Besides pointing to the wrong kind of people to go to for advice (1Thessalonians 5:14), Paul mentioned that the believers at Thessalonica needed to comfort the fainthearted and support the weak. The word for fainthearted (oligopsuchos ; G3642) is derived from two Greek words oligos (G3641), meaning ‘little’ and psuche (G5590), meaning spirit. That is, they had a little spirit a defeated complex or were easily discouraged. These people needed to be comforted and encouraged. I’m not so certain that Paul referred to another group of folks when he mentioned the weak (G772). I believe he may have been referring to the two groups of folks already mentioned: the disorderly and the fainthearted. Both groups were weak in the sense Paul had in mind.
Speaking of his own apostles, Jesus mentioned that their “spirit was willing, but the flesh was weak (G2641). That is, they wanted to be obedient, but they gave in to the flesh too soon. In the context of Paul’s letter, he referred to those who seemed willing to serve Christ, but were fearful of persecution. They were weak in their faith or in their spirit. They were probably boisterous in their claims of loyalty to Christ (cp. Mark 14:29), but fearful when it came to actually paying the price (cp. Mark 14:71). Their confidence lay in the flesh, which was too weak to be used to serve the Lord, and their spirit, though willing, wasn’t utilized in their service to Christ. Nevertheless, these are brethren and not enemies of the Gospel, so whether they are disorderly, or fainthearted both of whom are weak in faith, they need to be treated with patience (1Thessalonians 5:14). They were not to be treated badly, because they acted badly (1Thessalonians 5:15). Rather, they were to be treated well. Moreover, this also included how believers should treat those who were outside the fellowship.
In fact, as we work the works of God, nothing is to be done out of ill will. It is the will of God for believers to find a reason to rejoice at all times as they labor for him, to remain in a prayerful attitude in everything one does, and to be thankful in all things (1Thessalonians 5:16-18). One can’t do this by rendering evil for evil or treating one’s brethren badly, because they don’t measure up to the task (1Thessalonians 5:15).
Such brethren need to be encouraged, not put down simply because they do things badly. It was said of Christ: “A bruised reed He will not break off; a flickering wick He will not put out, until He brings His judgment to victory” (Matthew 12:20). In other words don’t suppress the spirit of those who are weak (1Thessalonians 5:19), for the Scripture says that the very ones who are weak in the Body of Christ are more necessary (1Corinthians 12:22). The Lord is not so weak that he is unable to work through them, so their ‘word from the Lord’ is not to be despised (1Thessalonians 5:20). Allow such things to occur and retain what appears to be good, but avoid all appearance of harm or wrong doing (1Thessalonians 5:21-22).
Paul closes with a prayer of peace for the believers at Thessalonica (1Thessalonians 5:23; cp. verse-13). In other words, he prayed that they would esteem their leaders in the Lord very highly, for their works sake. In doing so, they would be fully set apart to the Lord and their whole body, soul and spirit would be preserved to the day of the Lord’s return, because if they wholly set themselves apart to the Lord, he would see to it that they achieved victory (1Thesslaonians 5:23-24), for success and victory are not dependent upon the performance of the believer, but in his or her being set apart for the use of the Lord. He will establish one’s righteousness (Romans 10:3; Philippians 3:9). Finally, Paul asked for the prayers of the leaders at Thessalonica for his own work, reminding them to welcome all the brethren in Christ, and charging them to have this epistle read before all, and Paul prayed that the grace of the Lord, Jesus, would be with them (1Thessalonians 5:25-28).
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